Five days of cycling celebrations in Leicester

Five days of cycling fun are promised in Leicester later this month as Sky, British Cycling, the NHS and Leicester Council join together to promote the sport.

Ride Leicester Festival runs from August 23rd to August 27th, and offers activities including the ever-popular Skyride, which takes place on Sunday, August 26.

Running from 10am-4pm, Skyride is a safe ride for all the family on closed, traffic-free roads around Leicester. It's a great way to introduce kids and nervous adults to the joys of riding on the road. Just bring your bike.

Some Olympic heroes will be making special appearances courtesy of British Cycling, and there will also be live music and entertainment, and cycling demos.

After an unpromising start, having to be bribed by her parents to learn to ride without stabilisers, Sarah became rather keener on cycling in her university years, and was eventually persuaded to upgrade to proper road cycling by the prospect of a shiny red Italian bike, which she promptly destroyed by trapping a pair of knickers in the rear derailleur. Sarah writes about about cycling every weekend on road.cc.